Online Demo Against Forth Valley College Making Staff Redundant During Pandemic

Created on: 31 Mar 2020 | Last modified: 22 Apr 2020

A mass online demonstration against Forth Valley College’s continuing plans to make lecturing staff redundant during the COVID-19 epidemic will take place tomorrow, Wednesday 1 April at 1pm.

Teachers and lecturers from across Scotland are expected to join the online demo, to send a clear message to Forth Valley College that their plans are unacceptable and must be halted during the current crisis.

The online demonstration has been organised by the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS), the country’s largest teaching union. The EIS has condemned the management at Forth Valley college for continuing a process which aims to make lecturing staff redundant and replace them with less qualified staff on inferior terms and conditions.

Members of the media are invited to observe the online demo, which is being run via Zoom and can be accessed via: https://tinyurl.com/StayHomeStopRedundancies

Commenting, EIS General Secretary Larry Flanagan said, “It is shocking that management at Forth Valley College is seeking to make lecturing staff redundant during the global COVID-19 pandemic.

"In recent weeks, we have seen organisations such as Britannia Hotels, Sports Direct and JD Wetherspoon publicly condemned for their treatment of staff during this crisis – so the actions of Forth Valley College, a publicly funded institution, are absolutely deserving of condemnation.

"It is completely indefensible that the college is seeking to make hard-working lecturing staff redundant during this crisis. I would urge EIS members to join the online demo in support of these lecturers, to force Forth Valley College to rethink its actions.”

Speakers at the online demonstration will include: Larry Flanagan - EIS General Secretary; Charlie Montgomery - EIS FELA Acting President; Pam Currie - EIS FELA Former President; Anne-Marie Harley - Forth Valley College EIS Branch President.

Further info at: www.eis.org.uk/FELA/ForthValley